Hello,
I was a Taipei Juvenile Detention House inmate for 169 months. Has anyone been to Taiwan's prison system? Are you interested in sharing your experiences? Please, feel free to ask me everything about my stay there.

Hello,
I was a Taipei Juvenile Detention House inmate for 169 months. Has anyone been to Taiwan's prison system? Are you interested in sharing your experiences? Please, feel free to ask me everything about my stay there.

hi. i'm glad you aren't there now. i'd be greatful to just hear your story the way it happened; whatever way you want to tell it. thank you. p.s. until it ends 16 months might as well be 169 months.

Hi, you are so right about the last sentence.. It seemed to be more like 169 months than 16 months... Well, it is really important for me to share some details about my experience there. At first, I was reluctunt but now I think it's better to get some people who interested to know about it. Let's begin:

I live in Philadelphia, PA but I have a dual-citizenship as my father comes from Taiwan. I am the only child of my divorced parents and I live with my mother in America. At this point, I have to say that I am a quiet person and being an A-grade student, I had never encountered any kind of “problems” either inside the school or outside. My father lives permanently now in Taipei and works for an electronics company. Every year I spend my vacation with my father. He usually comes and visits me but sometimes I visit him too in Taiwan. At the summer of 2010 that was the case. My father had much work to do and wasn’t able to come and visit me except for a couple of days. That’s why I decided to visit him. It wasn’t after all the first time I was going to do something like this. I had travelled to Taipei with the plane another two times. My mom agreed even though she was not fond with the idea of me traveling alone. To make the long story short, it was a great time there and everything seemed to be going very – very well. I always got along well with my dad and I went out with my cousin, Lin in the night. Everything was so nice until my 5th day there.

As I’ve told you I used to go out with my cousin and some of his friends in the afternoon. That time we had the “terrific” idea of entering an abandoned building and stay there listening to some music and having fun. And we really had a great time there. Time passed really quick and it was dark out there. My dad called but since I was with my cousin he wasn’t actually worried. Anyway, at some time my cousin and his friends went to buy something to eat and I was left alone in the balcony of that building and due to the absence of my friends –who were to come back soon after all- I turned the music’s volume up. That was my huge mistake that night of June. It seemed that someone from the neighborhood called the police informing about someone in that building. They came fast and my cousin and the others were still not with me. The two officers came to me and told me that I was under arrest. I was in total sock. I couldn’t believe in my ears when they were telling me that I have the right to remain silent and I have the right to an attorney etc. They cuffed my hands behind my back and they did a frisk search. As we were going down to the police car, we met my cousin and his friends. They were not taken as they were not there when the officers came. The police officers just told them to get out of the place and I instantly told my cousin to inform my father. I felt so desperate when I was put in the back of the police car. That feeling is something I am never going to forget. After about thirty minutes we reached the Panchiao District Court. The car drove into a closed parking and then the officers headed me still handcuffed to the court’s holding area where they un-cuffed me and left me alone. The “area” was just a room with a table and some chairs and nothing more. After about an hour, my dad came with a lawyer to see me. They told me that in the morning is my trial. Since it I will have to wait at this court holding area along with them. We spoke about the situation and the lawyer told me that in Taiwan they are serious about juvenile crime but since this case was non-violent and I have no prior history they may be more lax. I was scared. In the meantime, my father informed my mom back home and she was about to take the first flight and come but she wasn’t able to attend the trial. The time passed while we were talking about the trial.

Hi, you are so right about the last sentence.. It seemed to be more like 169 months than 16 months... Well, it is really important for me to share some details about my experience there. At first, I was reluctunt but now I think it's better to get some people who interested to know about it. Let's begin:

I live in Philadelphia, PA but I have a dual-citizenship as my father comes from Taiwan. I am the only child of my divorced parents and I live with my mother in America. At this point, I have to say that I am a quiet person and being an A-grade student, I had never encountered any kind of “problems” either inside the school or outside. My father lives permanently now in Taipei and works for an electronics company. Every year I spend my vacation with my father. He usually comes and visits me but sometimes I visit him too in Taiwan. At the summer of 2010 that was the case. My father had much work to do and wasn’t able to come and visit me except for a couple of days. That’s why I decided to visit him. It wasn’t after all the first time I was going to do something like this. I had travelled to Taipei with the plane another two times. My mom agreed even though she was not fond with the idea of me traveling alone. To make the long story short, it was a great time there and everything seemed to be going very – very well. I always got along well with my dad and I went out with my cousin, Lin in the night. Everything was so nice until my 5th day there.

As I’ve told you I used to go out with my cousin and some of his friends in the afternoon. That time we had the “terrific” idea of entering an abandoned building and stay there listening to some music and having fun. And we really had a great time there. Time passed really quick and it was dark out there. My dad called but since I was with my cousin he wasn’t actually worried. Anyway, at some time my cousin and his friends went to buy something to eat and I was left alone in the balcony of that building and due to the absence of my friends –who were to come back soon after all- I turned the music’s volume up. That was my huge mistake that night of June. It seemed that someone from the neighborhood called the police informing about someone in that building. They came fast and my cousin and the others were still not with me. The two officers came to me and told me that I was under arrest. I was in total sock. I couldn’t believe in my ears when they were telling me that I have the right to remain silent and I have the right to an attorney etc. They cuffed my hands behind my back and they did a frisk search. As we were going down to the police car, we met my cousin and his friends. They were not taken as they were not there when the officers came. The police officers just told them to get out of the place and I instantly told my cousin to inform my father. I felt so desperate when I was put in the back of the police car. That feeling is something I am never going to forget. After about thirty minutes we reached the Panchiao District Court. The car drove into a closed parking and then the officers headed me still handcuffed to the court’s holding area where they un-cuffed me and left me alone. The “area” was just a room with a table and some chairs and nothing more. After about an hour, my dad came with a lawyer to see me. They told me that in the morning is my trial. Since it I will have to wait at this court holding area along with them. We spoke about the situation and the lawyer told me that in Taiwan they are serious about juvenile crime but since this case was non-violent and I have no prior history they may be more lax. I was scared. In the meantime, my father informed my mom back home and she was about to take the first flight and come but she wasn’t able to attend the trial. The time passed while we were talking about the trial.

I will continue tomorrow. Please feel free to ask me any questions.

thank you. no questions but a comment: reading this brings back vivid memories of being arrested for shoplifting in 1974. After being handcuffed, taken to the substation, fingerprinted, cavity searched and put in a holding cell for about 8 hours, they released me to my parents. I was 15, a good student, never been in trouble...& that experience was all I needed to make me want to stay out of trouble. If you were released to your dad like I was it would have been enough for you too. The most criminal aspect of this sort of thing is that it's treated as something seriously criminal. I feel a rant coming on but i'll save it for your next installment. take care.

It’s about 7am. One officer came and told my dad to leave (the lawyer has left earlier for the paperwork). I was so ashamed to put my family into all this. My offences according to the detective who came in were violation of curfew hours and illegal trespassing. He asked me some questions about the incident but I followed the recommendation of my lawyer and I didn’t provide them with any details. One thing that scared me was that the detective told me that unlike the curfew violation which was not serious, the other offence carried a mandatory detention from 11 months to 2 years…. It was really painful to hear that. Surely my dad and Mr. Kang (my lawyer) knew that but didn’t tell me anything fearing my response. Now, I was more anxious than ever. At about 8.30 am two officers came and handcuffed me again. They headed me to the main court’s area. There weren’t lots of people: me, my lawyer, my dad, the judge, the prosecutor, about 4 officers and a secretary. In Taiwan’s juvenile hearings there are no other people (like other family members etc) and that was positive for me. Time passed as I was trying to explain that I didn’t know about the curfew regulations since I live abroad and how sorry I was for the incident. However, with the other charge it was different. My lawyer had from previously decided that I had better plead guilty. And that’s what I did. And what could have I done? They had all the evidence of me being there. The whole situation took about 2 hours, maybe a little longer. The judge announced my 16 months sentence to Taipei Juvenile Detention House (TJDH). I was really shocked, ashamed and I really wanted to cry. I didn’t. I just hugged my dad who told me that everything is going to be alright and I should not be afraid of anything. My lawyer just explained me that judge gave me one of the minimum sentences and promised to help with anything. As the police officers handcuffed once again and headed me to the police car, I felt not just fear but a little bit of strong too, even though I couldn’t realize why. Maybe I didn’t want to collapse and make the whole situation worse. And I knew it was a mistake what I did. My dad has told my previously that my cousin that he was deeply sorry. He was not the one to blame. I was the older one and now I faced the consequences of my behavior.
I was then driven to the TJDH which is in Tucheng area of Taipei, about 20 minutes from court. It was 12 pm. When we reached, the officers headed me on the inside, in the booking area and removed my handcuffs. They left and two guards came to me. One of the guards performed a quick frisk search and the other one told to enter the booking area. Inside there was a woman in the office, which confirmed my personal details and then gave me some forms to complete in order to create my record. Apart from my name, date and place of birth, parent’s details and other basic facts, she asked me about school; any serious medical problems I might have and assigned me a number which was my Juvenile Detention I.D. From then, I was officially a TJDC juvenile inmate. She informed me about some basic rules of the facility and told me that after the booking I will have to complete a psychological test etc. Then one of the officers took me to a closed area and told me to strip. I removed my clothes one by one and he searched them, till I was in my underpants. He told me to remove them too as well as my watch and that this was a typical procedure that all the juveniles have to pass through. He did the strip and cavity search. IAfter that he gave me a white T-shirt with the logo of TJDH and a pair of light blue shorts. That was all of my clothing. No shoes, no socks, no underwear, nothing more. After the strip search, the officer got me to another room, where another guard cut my hair. They didn’t shave them but they cut them really short. After the haircut was over, I was to be at the booking office again where they took some photographs of me and had my fingerprints of all my fingers obtained. The woman officer who had previously created my record told me that my property will be given back to me at the time of my release and she gave me a “hygiene pack” which contained all the property I was allowed to have: a plastic cup, a toothbrush, a toothpaste, a bar of soap, a little razor, shaving cream, a blanket, a straw mat, two towels, a comb, a notepad and a pencil. She told me that I was now to take the psychological test and then a medical exam. The test was mainly about to find out if I was suicidal, which I certainly wasn’t and the medical exam was quite typical. Now I was about to be put on my room.
After the admission procedure was completed, I was put in my cell and from that day and then my life was practically the same. I was put in a cell with three other inmates, who were also low-risk just like me. The inside of the cell was quite spartan; apart from the two bunk-beds (each of them had a thin straw mat with no pillow; we used one of the towels instead) there was a long desk in front of the wall with four stools, a box for each of us to put our property and a squat-down toilet with a tap running at the hole. There was also a window but it was high on the wall so as not to see out of it and it wasn’t really large. When I first walked into the cell, I just went to my bed and slept. I was so exhausted that I wasn’t able to do anything more. The next thing I remember is being waken up at around 6am (since I wasn’t allowed a watch, all the times mentioned may not be exactly accurate). My first day at TJDC was pretty much the same as every other day there. I washed my face and my teeth at the cell sink as the other boys did and after we made our beds, which were checked by the officers (thanks to the Lian, Soun and Zen, I learnt how to do this). Then, after a quick inspection of the cell, we were headed to the cafeteria, where we were served breakfast. During all transportation we had to have our hands behind our backs and no talking was allowed. We have to be completely silent during the meals, too. The breakfast consisted of some cereals with milk, bread with butter and bread with marmalade. We were also provided a cup of milk. It wasn’t really tasty but just did the work: I wasn’t hungry any more. After breakfast, at around 7.30am it was time for school. The lessons are taught in Chinese and even though I know some basic aspects of the language it wasn’t easy to understand. It was a nice first day, though, and I particularly enjoyed Physics (the experiments we did on the lab) and Music lessons. In fact, school was one of the best experiences at T.J.D.H.
When school ended, at 12pm, it was time for lunch. Lunch consisted many times of rice, some kind of boneless meat or a vegetable soup and some kind of fish. It was always accompanied by a cup of tea and was served in the cafeteria, just like the breakfast. The silence rule applied here, too. After lunch, we were allowed some “quiet time” in our cells for about an hour, during which I mainly talked with my 3 cellmates – who have become my friends – or read some kind of book. After that, it was time for our physical training, which was one of the worst experiences at T.J.D.H. It is not that I am so athletic, but having to do innumerable push-ups, sit-ups, pull ups, running and then again exercises, was really exhausting. Playing basketball though was nice and that was the only time we were allowed footwear, too - some kind of plastic slippers that after physical training time were locked in a cupboard, leaving us barefoot again). Then, it was time for showering, which was done simultaneously for all of us. That was terrifying at first. I had never taken a shower in a shower module consisting of 6 shower heads, which means having next and in front of me other 5 naked persons. It was weird at first but having no other choice, as time passed I was only thinking about when my soap is going to need replacing. When finished, we were given new T-shirts and shorts, and if we ran out of something of the property (e.g. toothpaste) we could request it but only after giving the old back. After showering, at 5pm there was counseling and some psychological classes. Two hours later, we were given free time at the Day-Room, where we could play board-games, lend books, watch some –strictly controlled and educational-only- TV. Time always passed quickly on the day-room and it was time to get back to the cells at 8pm, in order to get dinner. Dinner was served in the cells, unlike breakfast and lunch. It usually consisted of fruit, a hotdog or a fishcake and a cup of milk. After dinner, we had to clean our cells and then at 9pm we were required to sleep.
Visitation was only allowed once a week. It lasted only 45 minutes and it was no contact, as we had to speak through a phone and watch the visitor through glass. The only visitors allowed are immediate family members – for me only my dad and my mam and your attorney. My dad came every week and my mother whenever she was able to (so much distance…), about once a month. I was allowed visiting at Sunday during day-room time, due to my surname. It was such a precious experience to be able to speak with your loved ones. I missed them all a lot while there and I was always looking forward for their visits. The only negative fact was the strip-search after visitation, but I got it over. The first letter of your surname indicates the day, you can have visitors. Apart, from visits the only other way to communicate with the outside was the letters. I could receive any number of letters a week, though I could only send 3 each week. This, because the cost of sending the letters was not ours. Both incoming and outgoing letters were checked for contraband; except when received or sent to a lawyer. I tried to write letters mainly to my mother who was really away and missed me, to my friends back home and the third one either to my dad, my grandmother in Taipei or someone else. Phone calling was strictly prohibited and I never used a phone, while in detention.

my immediate reaction: the inflexibility of the sentence for your charge, your age, & lack of any prior criminal history or tendencies; how it would cost a lot less/made more sense to send you back to the States rather than house you all that time...seems like an "agenda" to ensnare & indoctrinate (young persons in particular)...to what ends i couldn't presume to guess. i wasn't there so i'm just speculating.

Thank you for your response. Well, you are right about most of your statements. If I was here in the us I suppose that things would have been way more flexible. However, they couldn't send me back, since I have a dual citizenship and the criminal action took place there... I don't really understand even now why all this has gone this way, but I suppose is a matter of cultural difference. Asians, in general, take even the slightest misbihave at school or at home seriously, so when they came to my case, they wanted to "make an example out of this" I suppose. What was the only result? Mainly a waste of time as my friends here have all proceeded with their studies, while I started college this year.....

@aradia You're right! I guess it is just the different view we, the Americans, have on the same issue. In USA if there is no actual victim (e.g. DUI etc) there is almost always just a fine, but in Taiwan (and other Asian countries like Singapore) the penalties tend to be more harsh.

@Coolskate Thank you for posting! You were lucky, I did the same ,more or less, and thisa was the outcome...

If you have any questions or want more information, please contact me! Thank you for posting! It's good to share some mostly experience with other people that can understand you.

The Chinese prison system makes the Taiwan prison feels like a resort! (although I have not been to prison in Taiwan, I believe I have am qualified to say that). I have spent 4 months in a Chinese detention center (看守所), the worst place one could imagine.

Last edited by chunghwapost; 05-07-2013 at 03:27 AM..

The Following User Says Thank You to chunghwapost For This Useful Post:

Just wanted to thank you for sharing, I'm gonna get my 14 year old to read this...

Good luck...

Thank you very much for reading! Things are getting way better these days!

Quote:

Originally Posted by chunghwapost

The Chinese prison system makes the Taiwan prison feels like a resort! (although I have not been to prison in Taiwan, I believe I have am qualified to say that). I have spent 4 months in a Chinese detention center (看守所), the worst place one could imagine.

Thank you for your comments. I have heard a lot about chinese prisons but please do not compare different countries. I am half Taiwanese and this is my experience. Please do not make this post a political comparison between mainland china and taiwan, as it should not be. Either way, do you want to share any experiences about the chinese detention system?

Thank you very much for reading! Things are getting way better these days!

Thank you for your comments. I have heard a lot about chinese prisons but please do not compare different countries. I am half Taiwanese and this is my experience. Please do not make this post a political comparison between mainland china and taiwan, as it should not be. Either way, do you want to share any experiences about the chinese detention system?

I am also from Taiwan but the Chinese police thrown me in jail, I am not trying to make a comparison about political system, just my experience in a place without any human rights from what you've written seems to be much better and inhumane.

The Following User Says Thank You to chunghwapost For This Useful Post:

Of course there is no comparison between the two countries, as in the democratic Taiwan anyone is entitled a fair trial and the conditions in detention centers are at least human and reasonable. Especially in juvenile detention, there are very advanced and liberal practices applied. However, no detention can be a positive experience, of course. That's the point of my posts, not to say that the taiwanese prison system is cruel or anything like this, because simply it is not.

It’s about 7am. One officer came and told my dad to leave (the lawyer has left earlier for the paperwork). I was so ashamed to put my family into all this. My offences according to the detective who came in were violation of curfew hours and illegal trespassing. He asked me some questions about the incident but I followed the recommendation of my lawyer and I didn’t provide them with any details. One thing that scared me was that the detective told me that unlike the curfew violation which was not serious, the other offence carried a mandatory detention from 11 months to 2 years…. It was really painful to hear that. Surely my dad and Mr. Kang (my lawyer) knew that but didn’t tell me anything fearing my response. Now, I was more anxious than ever. At about 8.30 am two officers came and handcuffed me again. They headed me to the main court’s area. There weren’t lots of people: me, my lawyer, my dad, the judge, the prosecutor, about 4 officers and a secretary. In Taiwan’s juvenile hearings there are no other people (like other family members etc) and that was positive for me. Time passed as I was trying to explain that I didn’t know about the curfew regulations since I live abroad and how sorry I was for the incident. However, with the other charge it was different. My lawyer had from previously decided that I had better plead guilty. And that’s what I did. And what could have I done? They had all the evidence of me being there. The whole situation took about 2 hours, maybe a little longer. The judge announced my 16 months sentence to Taipei Juvenile Detention House (TJDH). I was really shocked, ashamed and I really wanted to cry. I didn’t. I just hugged my dad who told me that everything is going to be alright and I should not be afraid of anything. My lawyer just explained me that judge gave me one of the minimum sentences and promised to help with anything. As the police officers handcuffed once again and headed me to the police car, I felt not just fear but a little bit of strong too, even though I couldn’t realize why. Maybe I didn’t want to collapse and make the whole situation worse. And I knew it was a mistake what I did. My dad has told my previously that my cousin that he was deeply sorry. He was not the one to blame. I was the older one and now I faced the consequences of my behavior.
I was then driven to the TJDH which is in Tucheng area of Taipei, about 20 minutes from court. It was 12 pm. When we reached, the officers headed me on the inside, in the booking area and removed my handcuffs. They left and two guards came to me. One of the guards performed a quick frisk search and the other one told to enter the booking area. Inside there was a woman in the office, which confirmed my personal details and then gave me some forms to complete in order to create my record. Apart from my name, date and place of birth, parent’s details and other basic facts, she asked me about school; any serious medical problems I might have and assigned me a number which was my Juvenile Detention I.D. From then, I was officially a TJDC juvenile inmate. She informed me about some basic rules of the facility and told me that after the booking I will have to complete a psychological test etc. Then one of the officers took me to a closed area and told me to strip. I removed my clothes one by one and he searched them, till I was in my underpants. He told me to remove them too as well as my watch and that this was a typical procedure that all the juveniles have to pass through. He did the strip and cavity search. IAfter that he gave me a white T-shirt with the logo of TJDH and a pair of light blue shorts. That was all of my clothing. No shoes, no socks, no underwear, nothing more. After the strip search, the officer got me to another room, where another guard cut my hair. They didn’t shave them but they cut them really short. After the haircut was over, I was to be at the booking office again where they took some photographs of me and had my fingerprints of all my fingers obtained. The woman officer who had previously created my record told me that my property will be given back to me at the time of my release and she gave me a “hygiene pack” which contained all the property I was allowed to have: a plastic cup, a toothbrush, a toothpaste, a bar of soap, a little razor, shaving cream, a blanket, a straw mat, two towels, a comb, a notepad and a pencil. She told me that I was now to take the psychological test and then a medical exam. The test was mainly about to find out if I was suicidal, which I certainly wasn’t and the medical exam was quite typical. Now I was about to be put on my room.
After the admission procedure was completed, I was put in my cell and from that day and then my life was practically the same. I was put in a cell with three other inmates, who were also low-risk just like me. The inside of the cell was quite spartan; apart from the two bunk-beds (each of them had a thin straw mat with no pillow; we used one of the towels instead) there was a long desk in front of the wall with four stools, a box for each of us to put our property and a squat-down toilet with a tap running at the hole. There was also a window but it was high on the wall so as not to see out of it and it wasn’t really large. When I first walked into the cell, I just went to my bed and slept. I was so exhausted that I wasn’t able to do anything more. The next thing I remember is being waken up at around 6am (since I wasn’t allowed a watch, all the times mentioned may not be exactly accurate). My first day at TJDC was pretty much the same as every other day there. I washed my face and my teeth at the cell sink as the other boys did and after we made our beds, which were checked by the officers (thanks to the Lian, Soun and Zen, I learnt how to do this). Then, after a quick inspection of the cell, we were headed to the cafeteria, where we were served breakfast. During all transportation we had to have our hands behind our backs and no talking was allowed. We have to be completely silent during the meals, too. The breakfast consisted of some cereals with milk, bread with butter and bread with marmalade. We were also provided a cup of milk. It wasn’t really tasty but just did the work: I wasn’t hungry any more. After breakfast, at around 7.30am it was time for school. The lessons are taught in Chinese and even though I know some basic aspects of the language it wasn’t easy to understand. It was a nice first day, though, and I particularly enjoyed Physics (the experiments we did on the lab) and Music lessons. In fact, school was one of the best experiences at T.J.D.H.
When school ended, at 12pm, it was time for lunch. Lunch consisted many times of rice, some kind of boneless meat or a vegetable soup and some kind of fish. It was always accompanied by a cup of tea and was served in the cafeteria, just like the breakfast. The silence rule applied here, too. After lunch, we were allowed some “quiet time” in our cells for about an hour, during which I mainly talked with my 3 cellmates – who have become my friends – or read some kind of book. After that, it was time for our physical training, which was one of the worst experiences at T.J.D.H. It is not that I am so athletic, but having to do innumerable push-ups, sit-ups, pull ups, running and then again exercises, was really exhausting. Playing basketball though was nice and that was the only time we were allowed footwear, too - some kind of plastic slippers that after physical training time were locked in a cupboard, leaving us barefoot again). Then, it was time for showering, which was done simultaneously for all of us. That was terrifying at first. I had never taken a shower in a shower module consisting of 6 shower heads, which means having next and in front of me other 5 naked persons. It was weird at first but having no other choice, as time passed I was only thinking about when my soap is going to need replacing. When finished, we were given new T-shirts and shorts, and if we ran out of something of the property (e.g. toothpaste) we could request it but only after giving the old back. After showering, at 5pm there was counseling and some psychological classes. Two hours later, we were given free time at the Day-Room, where we could play board-games, lend books, watch some –strictly controlled and educational-only- TV. Time always passed quickly on the day-room and it was time to get back to the cells at 8pm, in order to get dinner. Dinner was served in the cells, unlike breakfast and lunch. It usually consisted of fruit, a hotdog or a fishcake and a cup of milk. After dinner, we had to clean our cells and then at 9pm we were required to sleep.
Visitation was only allowed once a week. It lasted only 45 minutes and it was no contact, as we had to speak through a phone and watch the visitor through glass. The only visitors allowed are immediate family members – for me only my dad and my mam and your attorney. My dad came every week and my mother whenever she was able to (so much distance…), about once a month. I was allowed visiting at Sunday during day-room time, due to my surname. It was such a precious experience to be able to speak with your loved ones. I missed them all a lot while there and I was always looking forward for their visits. The only negative fact was the strip-search after visitation, but I got it over. The first letter of your surname indicates the day, you can have visitors. Apart, from visits the only other way to communicate with the outside was the letters. I could receive any number of letters a week, though I could only send 3 each week. This, because the cost of sending the letters was not ours. Both incoming and outgoing letters were checked for contraband; except when received or sent to a lawyer. I tried to write letters mainly to my mother who was really away and missed me, to my friends back home and the third one either to my dad, my grandmother in Taipei or someone else. Phone calling was strictly prohibited and I never used a phone, while in detention.

To be continued.

I can relate to your experience.I was incarcerated several years back. I was incarcerated for 15 months. The entire time i was in jail from booking procedure (asking medical questions, finger printed, photographed, assigned bedding etc) until the time i was released, i wasnt given any footwear, no underwear and no socks. All i was provided was a long sleeve shirt with the prison logo and prison pants (i guess they figure since your gonna be barefoot the entire time day and night that the long sleeve shirt and pants will keep you warm? but when your barefoot all day and night on concrete floors in the prison your feet get COLLLLLLLLLD which makes you cold. I had asked for socks or even slippers many times but id swear the guards just brushed it off each time i asked. Finally after not getting any socks or slippers after several times asking i was aware it was customary to remain barefoot. After all they see us as a prisoner. Were there for a reason after all, Why be allowed luxuries. After a while i did get used to going barefoot. People were worried id "get" a fungus or something growing in the showers....i personally never had any issues the entire 15 months going barefoot in prison.
still wish i could have been provided with a basic necessity like footwear when i was an inmate

Hello,
I was a Taipei Juvenile Detention House inmate for 169 months. Has anyone been to Taiwan's prison system? Are you interested in sharing your experiences? Please, feel free to ask me everything about my stay there.

.

i spent 5 yrs of a 7 yr sentence for drug offences
2 yrs on remand in taipei remand center
3 yrs in taipei jail
it is a pretty hellish experience
although i had many friends in jail i knew from outside deals i had done wid them.
im uk guy
n speak chinese n had a taiwanese gf which was a blessn
i got friends of inmates inside
to have their friends bring in food frequently from outside
19 to 24 in one small cell wid no beds. 1 hole in ground to shit in, n no door.n only water to wash ass wid. disease is rife. doctor is sometimes a prison officer. i worked in factory 2 which was cushy compared to other factories.i had silk beddn allowed in. n sat at the top table reserved for gang bosses who ran the factory or jail.our table was mostly high up gang members who bought in loads of food. other tables brought food to our table to impress.most of trouble i got was from inmates who were either mad or showed no respect. often i let the others on our table deal wid it.which they did in their own way. u shud never get a prison sentence here in taiwan if u r a foreigner. most foreigners in taipei jail r drug mules.n most had never been to taiwan b4.n spoke no chinese n no one on the outside to help them. the hardest part was doing the sentence in peace. so many inmates had mental n physical problems.n there is no segregation from bananas [sexual convicts].n they were always around us. there is no where to hide from them.when government officials visited we had to clean all n prepare for their surprise visit. it was all so false. they were never allowed to roam freely n c what life is really like in jail.they only visited one wing that was cleaned b4, n wid beddn removed so they cud count the inmates in one cell. instead of the 24 in cell.it showed 8 or nine inmates.it was routine practise. the norm. visits r a shambles for foreigners. come half way around the world for a 30 min visit.prison officials r so sensitive fotos will get smuggled out, that this is their main job to censor all. u cant write anythng bad in letter as they wont get sent out. its juss so fake. inmate censor other inmates letter. the real cruel screws r allowed to abuse inmates rites. hope this deters anyone thinking of doind any kinda crime in taiwan. All blogs fotos or other forms of media r deleted by prison officials using software to block or delete anythng bad on internet about the penal system in taiwan. unless from a foreign newspaper. n no, zain dean shud never b allowed to b extradited from the uk to taiwan. he will b targeted by screws turning a blind eye.he wud b dead in days.

Of course there is no comparison between the two countries, as in the democratic Taiwan anyone is entitled a fair trial and the conditions in detention centers are at least human and reasonable. Especially in juvenile detention, there are very advanced and liberal practices applied. However, no detention can be a positive experience, of course. That's the point of my posts, not to say that the taiwanese prison system is cruel or anything like this, because simply it is not.

Taiwan actually has a lot of similarities to Chinese prison system which both of them are to punish people not to reform under the same traditional mindset. In China and Taiwan prisoners enjoy limited rights, treated bad seen as punishment and guards allow the bullies to manage the institution, made to work..etc. It is not somewhere in Norway, where re-education, reformation and protection of individualism are important. Yes Taiwan is a democratic society but basically people thinking are the same regarding to crime and punishment and from what I read from people in prison in Taiwan it is nothing new to me although treatment may be more human which I do agree with you.